Page 53 of The Christmas Cowboy

“What if he wants me to take a paternity test? Do I have to?”

“I don’t know.” He knew absolutely nothing about child custody. “We should talk to a lawyer.”

“If this comes out there’s no reason for us to stay married.”

There sure as hell was. He was in love with her, though he hadn’t told her yet and didn’t know when he should. Because he didn’t know what she felt about him. Besides gratitude that he’d married her. And he didn’t want gratitude. “Do you want a divorce?”

“No, but you might. The whole reason you married me was to keep my father from knowing what really happened.”

“That wasn’t the only reason.” He’d just figured out he was in love with her. No way was he giving her up without a fight. “I don’t want a divorce. I like being married to you.”

“Do you?”

He drew her close. She put her arms around his waist and laid her head on his chest. He put his hand in her hair and kissed the top of her head. “I do. Don’t worry. We’ll work this out.”

“I hope you’re right. I’m scared, Liam.”

So was he. He didn’t want to lose either Val or the baby. But she needed him to be strong and positive. “I think we should talk to a lawyer. So we’ll be prepared in case he does something.” Like try to claim the baby as his or demand partial custody. Although Liam thought Trent was too selfish to want custody once he thought about it and got over his knee-jerk reaction because he hated Liam.

“Okay.”

He held her away from him to look into her eyes. “In the meantime, I’m sure worrying isn’t good for you or the baby.”

“I know. I’ll try not to.”

But he knew that she would. And so would he.

Chapter Twenty-Two

Liam knew ofa couple of law firms in Marietta, but he’d gone to school with Marina Caldera, who practiced family law with the firm Forest, Rodgers, and Caldera. The next day he called her and was able to get him and Val an appointment that afternoon. Once Marina heard it was Liam and that the matter was somewhat urgent, she’d apparently worked them in quickly.

“What if someone sees us going into the law offices?” Val asked.

“So what if they do? We could be going for any number of reasons. Not that it’s anyone’s business.”

“You’re right. I’m just nervous.”

What could he say? The idea that anyone—especially Trent Harvey—could claim Val’s baby and cause all sorts of trouble worried him, but mostly it made him angry. In his mind, you couldn’t deny a child was yours and then change your mind on a whim. Except it probably wasn’t a whim. No, if Trent changed his mind, it would be because Trent hated Liam. He hated all the McFarlands but especially Liam. Hearing that Liam had married Val and was now legally the baby’s father was a prime setup for Trent to make trouble.

Ever since Trent’s father had been forced to sell his land to Jasper McFarland, Trent had hated them. For some reason, and Liam couldn’t figure out why, Trent blamed Jasper for his father having to sell. In reality Trent’s father had a gambling problem and wound up bankrupt and was forced to sell. Jasper more or less rescued him.

Liam had always liked Marina, though there’d never been anything romantic between them. Marina had dark hair, big brown eyes, and a brilliant mind. She’d graduated first in her class in law school and then come home to Marietta where she had a thriving practice as well as a reputation for doing a large amount of pro bono work.

Forest, Rodgers, and Caldera’s law office was on Church Street, in a pretty beige Victorian cottage that had been repurposed as a law office. There was a desk in the foyer where a receptionist welcomed them and directed them to Marina’s office. Liam thought it had been a study, if the bookshelves lining the wall were an indication.

“Liam, it’s so good to see you,” Marina said, giving him a hug. “It’s been too long.”

“It has. Thanks for fitting us in. We really appreciate it.”

Turning to Val, she offered her hand. “You must be Val. I went to high school with Riley as well as Liam, but I think you were several years behind us.” She waved at two leather side chairs. “Please, have a seat and tell me what I can do to help you.”

“Anything we tell you is confidential, right?” Val asked.

“Definitely.”

“I’m pregnant.”

“Congratulations.” Marina paused and added, “Is that what you needed to talk about?”

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